Political allies of Thailand’s ousted prime minister deserted him yesterday in his bid to return to power in a parliamentary vote, leaving him isolated following his removal by a court for violating conflict-of-interest rules.
A parliament vote to elect a replacement for Samak Sundaravej was postponed until Wednesday for lack of quorum after all five partners in the ruling coalition boycotted the session. About 70 lawmakers of his People’s Power Party (PPP) also said before the session they would vote against him.
The surprise revolt was the first clear sign that Samak’s support was eroding amid a tense political crisis that has gripped the country for weeks, raising fears of instability, economic chaos and even a military coup.
Acting Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat said the PPP would meet later yesterday to “find a better candidate who will be acceptable to our coalition partners and our party members.”
“The PPP has the legal right to form the coalition government. Even though our partners boycotted the meeting today, they boycotted the person [Samak] not the principle of staying together to form a new coalition,” he said.
Samak was booted out on Tuesday by a Constitutional Court ruling for violating a conflict-of-interest law by hosting two television cooking shows while in office.
The decision by the PPP to re-nominate him was opposed by his five coalition partners and the opposition the Democrat Party, all of which boycotted yesterday’s session in the 480-member House of Representatives.
Speaker Chai Chidchob postponed the vote to Wednesday, saying legislative rules required at least 235 members to be present. The announcement was preceded by confusion and drama with Chai initially saying he was delaying the session because only 161 members were present.
About 20 minutes later he called the house in session, saying 259 members were present as Democrat Party lawmakers trooped in and out of the chamber, causing more confusion. Chai then held a recount that brought down the number once again to 161.
“I hope the PPP will learn a lesson from today that they should not challenge the power of people,” said Suthep Thaugsuban, the secretary-general of the Democrat Party.
He said the party was ready to form the next government if members of the ruling coalition were to switch sides and join it.
Samak, a coarse politician who had antagonized virtually every Thai institution including the military and the media, has become one of the most divisive characters in Thai politics.
His troubles began soon after he took office in February when a strident anti-government group made up of the urban elite began protesting his appointment, saying he won the December election by manipulating illiterate rural voters.
Thousands of members of the group, the People’s Alliance for Democracy, stormed and occupied the Government House on Aug. 26.
They said they would not leave until it was clear that Samak or his cronies would not return to office.
Somchai, the acting prime minister, said a state of emergency in Bangkok would not be lifted until the protesters left the Government House, which houses the prime minister’s office.
Polish presidential candidates offered different visions of Poland and its relations with Ukraine in a televised debate ahead of next week’s run-off, which remains on a knife-edge. During a head-to-head debate lasting two hours, centrist Warsaw Mayor Rafal Trzaskowski, from Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s governing pro-European coalition, faced the Eurosceptic historian Karol Nawrocki, backed by the right-wing populist Law and Justice party (PiS). The two candidates, who qualified for the second round after coming in the top two places in the first vote on Sunday last week, clashed over Poland’s relations with Ukraine, EU policy and the track records of their
Four people jailed in the landmark Hong Kong national security trial of "47 democrats" accused of conspiracy to commit subversion were freed today after more than four years behind bars, the second group to be released in a month. Among those freed was long-time political and LGBTQ activist Jimmy Sham (岑子杰), who also led one of Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy groups, the Civil Human Rights Front, which disbanded in 2021. "Let me spend some time with my family," Sham said after arriving at his home in the Kowloon district of Jordan. "I don’t know how to plan ahead because, to me, it feels
‘A THREAT’: Guyanese President Irfan Ali called on Venezuela to follow international court rulings over the region, whose border Guyana says was ratified back in 1899 Misael Zapara said he would vote in Venezuela’s first elections yesterday for the territory of Essequibo, despite living more than 100km away from the oil-rich Guyana-administered region. Both countries lay claim to Essequibo, which makes up two-thirds of Guyana’s territory and is home to 125,000 of its 800,000 citizens. Guyana has administered the region for decades. The centuries-old dispute has intensified since ExxonMobil discovered massive offshore oil deposits a decade ago, giving Guyana the largest crude oil reserves per capita in the world. Venezuela would elect a governor, eight National Assembly deputies and regional councilors in a newly created constituency for the 160,000
North Korea has detained another official over last week’s failed launch of a warship, which damaged the naval destroyer, state media reported yesterday. Pyongyang announced “a serious accident” at Wednesday last week’s launch ceremony, which crushed sections of the bottom of the new destroyer. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called the mishap a “criminal act caused by absolute carelessness.” Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the Munitions Industry Department of the Party Central Committee, was summoned and detained on Sunday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. He was “greatly responsible for the occurrence of the serious accident,” it said. Ri is the fourth person
RSS